KEYS Converter

Extract text from Nintendo Switch keys (KEYS)


Drop or upload your .KEYS file
✈

How to extract text from your KEYS file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your KEYS file.
  2. You’ll see a preview, if available.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert KEYS to another file type

To convert KEYS system keys to another format, you need Ryujinx or other Encoded software.

Convert a file to KEYS

To convert other file formats to the "Cryptographic Key File" file type, you need software like Ryujinx or a similar tool.


About KEYS files

The .keys file extension is most commonly used for Nintendo Switch cryptographic keys. These files, often dumped using homebrew tools like Lockpick_RCM, contain the AES decryption keys required by Switch emulators like Ryujinx to decrypt game ROMs and system firmware. Without these files (specifically prod.keys and title.keys), emulators cannot read or execute Switch software. Other applications also use the .keys extension for completely different purposes. Apple uses it for binary property list (plist) files in certain system contexts. 1Password uses it for XML-based keychain data. Wireshark relies on it for SSL/TLS session key logs, and Oracle Java uses it for KeyStore certificates. The main disadvantage of .keys files is this severe lack of standardization. Because multiple programs use the exact same extension for completely different data types (binary, XML, and plaintext), operating systems do not know which application to launch. Opening a binary Apple or Java .keys file in a text editor results in scrambled, unreadable characters. Furthermore, emulator keys are tightly bound to specific firmware versions and require frequent manual updates. To inspect, edit, or troubleshoot the contents of a .keys file, conversion is highly recommended. Convert text-based key files to TXT or JSON for easy reading and editing. If the file is an XML-based keychain or a property list, convert it to XML or CSV for data extraction. Drop your file here to view and convert it securely right in your browser, completely bypassing file format confusion.

Convert.Guru analyzes your KEYS file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.

Users also converted SQLITE, KEY, MSI, OTRKEY, BPS, 264 and PPT files.


FAQ

If you want to convert KEYS file to PPT, you can use Ryujinx or similar software from the "Cryptographic Key Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert files to KEYS, try Ryujinx or another comparable tool in the "Cryptographic Key Storage" category.



The KEYS Converter Story

The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our KEYS converter.